FLORHAM PARK, N.J. -- New York Jets wide receiver Santonio Holmes, who missed a handful of voluntary practice sessions while out of the country on a good-will trip to a U.S. Air Force base in Germany, pulled himself out of practice Thursday because he felt he was being overworked.

Near the end of the two-hour workout, Holmes limped off the field and tossed his helmet, seemingly out of frustration. He spoke to receivers coach Sanjay Lal and also spent time with the trainer. Afterward, Holmes insisted he wasn't injured, but he still seemed bothered.

"I was talking to the coach, letting him understand it was too many reps today," Holmes said. "I've been gone for a while, so I can't be at full tempo like the rest of the guys and where they want us to be at."

Holmes said he was slated for 35 practice reps, but left after 20 or 25. The Jets wrapped up their OTA workouts, with a mandatory minicamp scheduled for next week.

The irony, of course, is that Holmes had to be pulled out of the Jets' final game, in the final minutes of the season-ending loss to the Miami Dolphins. Holmes was frustrated by his lack of involvement in the offense -- he had no receptions -- and complained in the huddle, nearly coming to blows with right tackle Wayne Hunter.

That was the seminal moment of the Jets' well-chronicled season of turmoil, much of which involved Holmes and quarterback Mark Sanchez.

After a tumultuous couple of months, the team is trying to rebuild its chemistry. Holmes took another positive step this week by declaring that he will attend Sanchez's "Jets West" passing camp in the coming weeks at the high school in Mission Viejo, Calif., that the quarterback attended.

Holmes was at "Jets West" in 2010, but skipped last year's camp because he was unsigned at the time. Even though he's not team captain anymore, Holmes feels he needs to be there because he still sees himself as a team leader.

"Being out there is going to give the young guys a sense of security, knowing we have our veteran, we have our leader here with us, who's going to help us and get us on the same page," Holmes said. "I think all of us doing the same thing at the same time will be a great chemistry builder."

Coach Rex Ryan has all but admitted he made a bad decision by making Holmes a captain. In fact, Ryan said he no longer will have team captains.

Holmes is the elder statesman of a young receiving corps, which includes a likely rookie starter, Stephen Hill, so he's trying to show the way.

But he admittedly still isn't in top shape.

"I'm at OTA No. 5," he said. "I've got lot of catching up to do for myself."

It's unbelievable how divided the Jets were last year. They have TONS of talent on that team and didn't even come close to anything last year because everybody in the locker room is a finger pointer and media blab. Santonio has officially became a locker room cancer IMO and the Jets should see if they can trade him off (I have no idea about his contract status). Santonio needed the veteran leadership and team structure of the Steelers to be successful evidently, his skills are still there, he's just to immature to excel. Sanchez takes a lot of the flack but IMO he's a pretty decent QB overall and is not one of the main reasons for their struggle last year, but he definitely could improve. Either way, no matter who is to blame, it shouldn't leave the locker room. In Pittsburgh it wouldn't even be allowed to get to that point.

This is why i had faith in the front office's decision to get rid of holmes. hell of a talent, but possible cancer

His head got bigger than his talents after we won that Super Bowl. I knew right then, long before he was traded off, that he'd be the first one Rooney'd make an example of if something went wrong on the team.

I think Rooney made an example of the already troubled Holmes for Ben. Letting Ben know, "Hey, i'll trade your ass for a miracle pick in the draft".

Yeah. I followed Holmes extensively at OSU, and I was BEYOND pumped when we took him in the draft.

He was always full of himself at OSU. Had a big head. When he was drafted by us he seemed humbled. Even when he caught the touchdown pass the took Cinci out of playoff contention in the last game of the season in '06, he was humble.

Up until the Super Bowl. His head grew bigger than his talents, and it was all downhill from there.

. Even when he caught the touchdown pass the took Cinci out of playoff contention in the last game of the season in '06, he was humble.

Up until the Super Bowl. His head grew bigger than his talents, and it was all downhill from there.

I recall Tone was already acting out in the 2008 season when Tomlin sat him for the Giants game after this chat between Holmes and the Pittsburgh PD

Mr. Holmes did not have his driver's license but handed over his registration and insurance paperwork. Officers said they smelled marijuana in the SUV. Officer Kusenko asked Mr. Holmes if he had been smoking marijuana in the SUV that day.

"No," Mr. Holmes told officers, according to the affidavit, "but yesterday I was."

Police said Mr. Holmes told them he had marijuana in the vehicle. He pointed out two marijuana-filled cigars, known as "blunts," in a vehicle compartment. Officers recovered a third blunt from a pack of cigars in the center console.

how much is he getting paid a year to "play" a sport?
Why don't he go down to the docks and work some 15-hour days for $11/hour and then let us know if he's being "over-worked" ? I can't STAND this guy.

In his first appearance since returning from Germany, where he spent the last two weeks on a USO trip, Santonio Holmes “staged a mini-meltdown” during the Jets’ final OTA practice on Thursday, ESPNNewYork.com reports.

Supposedly, a “disgusted” Holmes, who angrily tossed his helmet and exchanged words with receivers coach Sanjay Lal, pulled himself out of the nearly two-hour workout because he felt overworked.

“I was talking to the coach, letting him understand it was too many reps today,” Holmes said. “I’ve been gone for a while, so I can’t be at full tempo like the rest of the guys and where they want us to be at.”

“I’m at OTA No. 5. … I’ve got a lot of catching up to do for myself.”

Although not injured, Holmes was seen limping after taking somewhere between 20-25 reps. Unsurprisingly, coach Rex Ryan came to his defense, saying the veteran wideout simply did what’s best for himself.

“If he thinks he’d be stretching it to give five or 10 extra reps, you have to be smart about it,” Ryan said, adding, “If a guy thinks he’s tight … you don’t want a guy pulling (a muscle). He knows his body better than anybody.”

This, of course, is notable because it was just five months ago when Holmes and offensive lineman Wayne Hunter nearly came to blows in the Jets’ season-ending loss to the Dolphins, during which teammates accused Holmes of quitting on the team. That incident made public New York’s fractured locker room and sent Gang Green into a tailspin which they’ve just started recovering from.

Up to this point, Holmes has attempted to right the wrongs this offseason. He started by repairing his streaky relationship with quarterback Mark Sanchez, whom he reportedly blew off during offensive meetings last season. The two began their bonding by training in Orlando, and eventually worked their way back to New York, where they enjoyed some quality time together during a Knicks game. Just a few days ago, Holmes announced he will be joining Tim Tebow and a plethora of skill-position players at “Jets West,” a passing camp Sanchez coordinates.

Despite being on the up-and-up, however, Holmes’ true colors may have shown themselves here. It wouldn’t be a huge deal in any other market, but this is the Big Apple, and, as he knows by now, everything is dissected down to the tiniest detail.

This could — and probably will — blow over in the next few days, but Holmes needs to make sure nothing of the sort comes up again. Otherwise, the Jets are left with nothing but an expensive tiger whose stripes haven’t changed one iota.